If you've been charged with Michigan Resisting Arrest for the very first time, this doesn't make you a criminal or a bad person.  I see clients on a daily basis who have have never been involved with the police and have never hurt a person in their life.  It's quite common that a good person will get themselves in a bad situation, which results in being charged with Michigan Resisting Arrest. 

Click here to learn how to take a growth mindset to a resisting arrest case in Michigan

Michigan Resisting Arrest is defined as "an individual who assaults, batters, wounds, resists, obstructs, opposes or endangers a person who the individual knows or has reason to know is performing his or her duties".  Resisting arrest in Michigan is a felony that carries a penalty of two years in person.

If during the incident the police officer is injured and requires immediate medical attention, the offense is a four year felony.  If the police officer suffers a serious impairment of a body function, the offense is now a 15 year felony, and if the incident causes death to a police officer, it is now a 20 year felony.

It is becoming more common for prosecutors to charge resisting arrest in cases where the charge may not have been issued in the past.  One could argue that most arrests in Michigan have some aspect of either resisting, obstructing or opposing, but the crime is not always charged.  Some prosecutors will cut the defendant a break, and only charge attempted resisting arrest, which makes the crime a misdemeanor rather than a felony.  

Another common charging strategy is to charge a bunch of misdemeanors along with  felony resisting arrest, with the idea that dismissing the felony will be a bargaining chip to get the client to plead guilty to the other misdemeanors.  While a dismissal of the felony is a great result, having a series of misdemeanors on your record will not allow you to expunge your record at a later date.  ​

If you've been charged with a Michigan Embezzlement for the very first time, this doesn't make you a criminal or a bad person.  I see clients on a daily basis who have have never been arrested or even accused or doing something wrong.  It's quite common that a good person will get themselves in a bad situation, which results in being charged with a Michigan Embezzlement.  

Michigan embezzlement is a serious crime with implications that could affect your ability to gain future employment.  The crime of embezzlement involves you as an agent or servant or in a position of trust by a principal actor.

In order to be found guilty of this offense, the prosecution must prove:
-   There was money or property stolen, which belonged to the principal
-   You had a relationship of trust with the principal as an agent or employee
-   You obtained possession or control of the money or property because of that relationship
-   You dishonestly disposed of or converted the money or property to your own use or secreted the money with intent to convert it to your own use without consent of the principal
-    At the time of the conversion, you intended to defraud or cheat the principal

The penalty for Michigan embezzlement varies depending upon the value of the money or property.  The value is based on “fair market value” and it ranges from $1000-$20,000, $200-$1000 and some amount under $200.  Embezzlement over $1,000 is a felony in the State of Michigan.  

The crime of embezzlement in Michigan is different than larceny, and other property crimes, because of the “trust” relationship, meaning you legally possessed the money or property, but violated that trust by going beyond the trust granted.

It’s common for an employee of a company to be charged with this offense, because that employee was in possession of the company’s money or property as an employee, but did something to go outside of this trust.

A common case is the employee working the cash register and manipulating the transactions or outright stealing money from the cash register for their own financial gain.  It may be possible for your attorney to work on a plea agreement with the prosecution that may have you pay the money back to the employer and agree to never return again in exchange for a plea to a lesser offense.

I've worked with many clients charged with this serious crime, and I have been able to work out deals where my client's charges are dismissed, and have no criminal conviction from their original charges. 

​hen someone is charged with a felony such as embezzlement, the first thought is, how does this impact me? What will happen to your job, family, life? Stop playing the victim; this is not how to best approach a serious felony.  We need to acknowledge what happened, and make a decision to grow from this rather than sulk and feel bad for ourselves.  

To achieve the best outcome for an embezzlement case in Michigan, it means the best outcome both inside and outside the courtroom.  It means changing the culture of your case and adopting core values to bring real change.  Real change is not easy, and it requires intense stakeholder mapping, especially to the victim in the case. 

How can we make things right for them, but also work toward the best long-term outcome for you? Do not be tempted to turn this into you vs them; if you stole, you stole, own it, and move forward with a plan.  The prosecutor and judge are going to come down harder on someone isn't willing to acknowledge lapse in judgment. 

For embezzlement cases there may be inconsistences or numbers don't add up; those can be fixed and negotiated, but you have a choice if you want to be proactive; to apply the time value of money, and creation of a balance sheet, we can create measurable results to help us re-brand the case. 

This requires a unique client value chain for embezzlement cases; a mix of retribution and lesson learning.  ​

If you've been charged with Malicious Destruction of Property (MDOP) in Michigan, it's important to speak to an experienced Michigan criminal defense attorney about your case.  In order to be found guilty of this offense, the prosecution must prove the following elements:

1- The property belonged to someone other than the defendant
2- The defendant destroyed or damaged the property
3- The defendant did so knowing it was wrong without just cause or excuse, and with intent to damage the property
4- Proving the amount of damage, which will determine what level offense you're charged with

Click here to learn how to take a growth mindset to an MDOP case in Michigan

- If the damage is under $200 dollars, you will be charged with a 93 day misdemeanor.
- If the damage is between $200-$1,000 dollars you will be charged with a one year misdemeanor
- If the damage exceeds $1,000, but below $20,000, you will be charged with a felony
- If the damage exceeds $20,000 you will be charged with a more serious felony that carries more jail time

The prosecution will be able to add together numerous incidents if the crime involved the same parties within 12 months.  The test for value is "fair market value".  This is what is called a specific intent crime, which means if the defendant did not purposely destroy the property, but rather did it by mistake or without intent, the prosecution cannot prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt, and the defendant is entitled to a not-guilty verdict.

A Michigan MDOP can usually be negotiated down to a lesser charge if the defendant is willing to reimburse the victim for the damage to their property. It's not uncommon for a felony offense to be reduced to a misdemeanor with full restitution to the victim. ​

​Careless Driving
Careless Driving requires the prosecution to prove you drove in a careless, imprudent or negligent manner.  Reckless requires you intentionally drove in a certain manner, whereas Careless doesn’t look to your willful disregard but rather the results of your driving.

Careless driving carries the possibility of three points on your license, but it is not a misdemeanor, and carries no possible jail time.  The fines, costs and license implications are less severe than Reckless Driving.

A careless driving case has a lower burden for the prosecution.  Depending on the facts in your case, it's possible that the other driver was at fault, or your driving decision was out of necessity such as to avoid another car, a pot hole or any other reasonable explanation.

​We can apply The New Rules of Criminal Defense by making a decision to compete in a strategic manner, and acknowledge that careless, reckless and leaving the scene of an accident are serious allegations.  Some people assume because it's a "traffic ticket" that its somehow not a criminal charge or something that should be treated that way.

Leaving the scene and reckless driving are both misdemeanors which will give you a criminal record, carry 6 points and Reckless driving will suspend you license for multiple months, worse than a standard DUI.  

People get into traffic incidents for different reasons, and it's natural to blame the other driver, the road conditions or minimize what you did; to take this approach would be a fixed mindset and the client is stuck in the box of being the victim; that somehow being charged with a crime they are owed something or should benefit in some way.  

From the stakeholders in the case, this is not true, and when a case begins to take that type of mindset is not going to yield the best results.  To adopt a growth mindset, assess the situation as someone outside the box and realize that the offense is a whole lot bigger than just you.  

We need to change the culture around the case and adopt core values; the prosecutor, judge and probation take their own worst experience on the road with another driver and put that on you as the person charged; it's human nature to not give you the benefit of the doubt. 

Complex change on this type of case is not easy, but if we can turn the stakeholders into shareholders who will support working toward our goals then we have achieved our goal. A client balance sheet is key in these type of offenses; it answers the question "what's in your wallet" as in how have you lived the last X years on earth and as a driver.  Are you someone with a clean record or someone with a list of traffic offenses?

Are you will to adopt the client value chain and build assets on your case; do you understand the importance of the time value of money, and how doing things in the present have more impact than the future? If we are able to create measurable progress and results, we are able to reset, rebrand and earn rewards for your case. 

Reckless Driving
To found guilty of this offense, the prosecution must show that you were driving a car on a road open to the public or generally accessible to cars, including a parking lot, and you drove the car in a willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property.  "Willful or wanton disregard" means more than simple carelessness but does not require proof of an intent to cause harm. It means knowingly disregarding the possible risks to the safety of people or property.

This offense is a misdemeanor and carries many of the same license implications, fines and costs of a drunk driving offense.  If convicted of this offense, six points would be added to your license.

The prosecution will attempt to prove this charge with testimony of your driving including speed, along with the the road conditions.  If there is evidence of intoxication, the prosecution will be allowed to introduce this evidence; the jury may factor this into the decision whether there was a "willful or wanton disregard" for the safety or persons or property, but this alone is not enough for a conviction.

One way to defeat a reckless driving charge is to show an error in judgment on the part of the charged driver to explain the erratic driving,  which creates reasonable doubt as "willful or wanton disregard".  Let's say you're observed switching lanes, which causes an accident, and you're charged with reckless driving - well if the other car was in your blind spot, then this may be merely negligence on your part, not willful disregard.
​

​As a former prosecutor, I worked on a lot of Leaving the Scene of an Accident type cases.  These charges varied depending upon the facts of the case.  The most common was Leaving the Scene of an Accident Causing Property Damage, which simply means the defendant was involved in an accident and drove away.  This particular charge carries 6 points on your driving record and is a criminal misdemeanor. 

As a former prosecutor, I would talk to the police officer and any witnesses involved to gain a better understanding of the circumstances of this charge.  Common inquires for me were the following:

- what time of day did this happen?
- what type of road/area did this occur?
- driving record of the person charged
- if the defendant has a version to share/story to offer up 
- how bad was the property damage, nature of the damage
- any efforts by the defendant to stick around/report 

It made a big difference if someone with a clean record got into a minor fender bender, stopped, talked to the other driver, and after waiting for the police to arrive, decided they needed to get to work, and they drive off vs someone who destroys ten mailboxes in a neighborhood, smashes into cars and ends up flipped over in someone's yard at 2 am.  Sure, both are against the law, but I applied common sense as a prosecutor.  

Most defendants in this situation are trying to avoid the points abstracting on their license and avoiding a criminal misdemeanor.  There is a 0 point offense called failure to report an accident, which could be the end result in a negotiation; this is still a misdemeanor, but it was a start in resolving a case.  

As a prosecutor you have limited resource and time; you must use that time as wisely as possible and pick and choose your hearing and trials.  Is the best course of action to take this type of case to trial, or should you focus on making sure all involved are OK, restitution is paid, and assurances (tangible action) the defendant will avoid future issues going forward.  Most defense lawyers did not provide the last part when I prosecuted these cases.  

While property damage was most common, there is a separate offense for Leaving the Scene of an Accident Causing Personal Injury.  This type of case might have similar facts, but another person was injured as part of the case; if the person suffered serious impairment or worse a death, the charges get more serious into the felony level with action on your driver's license.  The misdemeanor "ordinary" injury charge carries 6 points and  a 90-day driver's license suspension.   Defendant's surely wanted to avoid these sanctions, but when someone was hurt, a lot of that decision depended on input from the injured party.  

Having spent time prosecuting these cases, I am well aware of the ins and outs and the options for resolution.  If a case is strong, with statements, maybe video, admissions by the defendant if they were located, it's going to be time to try to resolve the case rather than climbing up a steep hill against the evidence.  The door is usually open for compromise for these cases.  

As stated above, common goals for resolving these cases are to avoid a criminal misdemeanor, points on license and suspension of license.  That path varies depending upon the facts of the case.  There could be restitution involved for damage to property or injury to a person.   Restitution can be challenged with a hearing, but sometimes you can use the agreement not to challenge the restitution to get what you want on the back-end of the deal for your license and record.  

While nobody should be leaving the scene of an accident, there is always another side of the story, and if my client has a reason (there is no excuse), we're going to share that story in the best light possible.  I may have my client do a driver improvement course, safe driving, community service work etc.  

​If my client is having mental or emotional issues, and somehow that was a factor in my client leaving the scene, we're going to get into counseling and get a professional involved to show things can be worked on, and my client was not in the best place when this happened. 

​Anything to provide context and a sign of positive direction for my client.   Rather turn the incident into a learning experience than a long-term impact on my client's life.